Apologies Accepted
by robert3A-SN
Summary: Jeff almost succeeds in getting Annie to go out with him, until she remembers he's never addressed or apologized for his various mistakes with her. When he still can't bring himself to face it, he needs help to delve into their past and try to correct it once and for all. Complete.
1. Chapter 1

"So with that in mind….does dinner sound good sometime?"

Jeff hoped the awesome start of his Winger speech to Annie balanced out the weaker ending. Since the point of the speech was to ask her out and finally start some kind of relationship, the actual question should have sounded better. Then again, he didn't want the group to know the date of their first date – at least not while they had a chance to mess it up.

But he did give this speech in front of the group in the study room, so that helped their chances to meddle. Yet Jeff would worry about that later –now the only reaction he cared about was Annie's. And it looked like it could go either way so far.

However, Annie's face soon went from conflicted to certain, as she asked, "Can I pick the restaurant?"

"Oh, what the hell?" Jeff said while trying not to outright cheer. "Follow whatever dream first date binder you've got!"

"Jeff, the last one I made was five years ago, and I forgot to get it from my house. You want to see my mom and steal an old binder I made about Troy, be my guest!" Annie offered.

"Nah, I can wait a few dates for that big step," Jeff kidded, although Annie smiled and made him feel relieved anyway.

"Well, I've gotta give it to you, Jeff. You pulled off quite a win there," Britta complemented, but Jeff still felt annoyed and a bit nervous anyway.

"That was the idea," Jeff answered, hoping that would be enough.

"No, really! You screwed up really bad with her for three years, and you _still _got her in the end with a Winger speech! Without even mentioning that crap you pulled on her or anything!" Britta recounted. "But I guess he had good Winger apology speeches for that, huh Annie?"

"Ah. So that's how you want to Britta this for me, huh?" Jeff asked with a thin veneer of civility.

"Oh come on, I'm paying you a compliment, geez!" Britta insisted. "You messed up a lot, but you finally apologized for it and made it right! I could be pissed you didn't do it for me, and you know it! But I'm being the bigger woman and giving you credit where credit is due! Right, buddy?"

"Oh come on, I never made Winger speeches for that and you know it, _buddy_!" Jeff nitpicked.

"That's right, you didn't…." Annie realized, which helped Britta realize her mistake.

"Oh….I thought you already said sorry for those screw-ups. But you….oh," Britta said, shrinking in her seat in case that would cover up her mistake. But Jeff and Annie distracted everyone enough for her.

"You said all that stuff about being a better man for me," Annie reminded Jeff. "But you _did _skip over all the times you _weren't_ a better man. In fact, you've skipped over it for the last few years. All those things you said and did that hurt me, and we still haven't addressed _any _of it! No talk, no apology, nothing!"

Jeff felt put on the spot, so he did what he did best, even now – deflect. "Well, I didn't see you bring it up either! And do you want to bring up our issues in front of the whole group? That hasn't worked out before!"

This actually made Annie pause and reflect, realizing, "Yeah, I guess. Those weren't my best moments…" she reflected until she gasped and frowned. "Hey, wait a minute! You spoke about us in front of the group today! So why is it so bad for _me_ to ask about us here?"

"I gave that speech here so you'd know I was serious about us! But this-" Jeff started before getting cut off, somewhat to his relief.

"All right, all right! This is private, and I don't want to embarrass you. I know what that can lead to. Why don't we go somewhere alone to talk it over?" Annie offered, getting up to lead Jeff away. However, he just stayed in his seat. "Jeff? I'm not putting you on the spot with the group, so we can talk about the past now. Right?"

Ideally, it would have taken a second to say yes. But Jeff dragged it out, had no words at all – then he had the wrong ones. "Annie, do we have to? I just proved I want to date you now, so the other stuff doesn't matter anymore. I mean, if I didn't do that stuff and we got together earlier, it would have been a disaster! So technically, I did the right thing with all that, so….you're welcome?"

Annie looked ready to blow a gasket, so everyone braced for the worst – with Pierce and Troy ducking below the study table. However, after a few more seconds, Annie took a few deep breaths and confronted Jeff more calmly.

"Maybe you're right, Jeff. Knowing how we were, we might have been really bad if we got together early. I'll give you that," Annie conceded. "But I learned that after you hurt me, broke my heart and trust, and made me act and feel like a child countless times! I can't thank you for that! And you…."

Even if Jeff had anything to say, he didn't get any room as Annie kept attacking. "You really thought we could get together without talking about it. You really thought you didn't have to apologize, take responsibility, or acknowledge all the pain you caused me….and we'd _still _be together! And I almost let that happen!"

With that, she zeroed in on Jeff and asked, "Well? Do you want to let that happen, or should we actually talk about it somewhere?"

Jeff merely froze up and hoped to run out the clock – but putting thoughts and feelings off to the side until later never worked with Annie anymore. A lesson he should have learned by now.

Yet he had to learn again when Annie huffed, "You know, I'm glad I remembered this again _before _we went out! I know I made mistakes too, but I've accepted it, and I'll make sure I'll never do them again! And I'm willing to address _all _of it in case you still feel insecure! If you can't do that much for me, even now, how can I trust you not to hurt me again? Especially when it'd hurt much more now?"

Jeff again froze up, inexperienced with how to answer such questions. When it became clear he had nothing, Annie sighed and said, "You know what, don't bother. Dinner doesn't sound so good right now. I'll see you on Monday, guys." She said pointedly before gathering her things and leaving as calmly as she could.

Everyone she left behind stayed quiet and stunned, especially Jeff. But naturally, Britta broke the silence by saying, "Well….that was hardly worth remembering, wasn't it?"

"Why do you talk? _Why_ do you talk?!" Jeff snapped.

"Oh, _now _you're talking too?" Britta answered. "Look, I'm sorry, I really am! I never give you compliments, so I made a rookie mistake, okay? I really thought you apologized for that crap and it was okay to joke about it! I _never_ would have done it if I knew…."

She then lit up and stated, "Wait, if you never apologized or even _talked _about the crap….I'm not the screw-up here! You didn't deserve my praise after all, so there! Oh wait, it made you look like a jackass, so you _did _earn it, jackass! Ah, now _that _plays to my strengths!"

Jeff was speechless again, yet this time it was more out of anger. After letting out a few sputters, he groaned and left himself, heading in the opposite direction of Annie. Once Britta's euphoria from a good Jeff burn wore off – and once the group glared at her – she shrank in her seat again.

However, two members who hadn't spoken found Jeff lying on the longue area couch when classes ended. Jeff then looked up and saw Shirley and Abed standing over him. "So they sent you two, huh? Well, this is a brand new pairing, so points for originality."

"Nice. Technically inaccurate due to our Jesus movie adventure, but nice," Abed praised.

"At least _you _know how to praise people and not ruin their lives," Jeff snarked as he sat up.

"Jeffrey, Britta really was sorry. She was just trying to say something nice, and show you she wasn't bothered by you and Annie. Of course she didn't know how to do it, but what do you expect?" Shirley explained.

"Because she's Britta?" Jeff filled in.

"Well….yeah, let's go with that. It helps explain the other stuff she's lacking, so what the hell?" Shirley brushed aside.

"Then why did she lack to come here herself? Why are you two here?" Jeff wondered.

"Troy's helping her take her mind off her mistake. I've got time before I end up walking in on them during sex, so here I am," Abed explained.

"Great, she gets sex and look what I have," Jeff groaned, then turned to Shirley. "I guess that reminds you how I'm making God cry by wanting Annie. You didn't remind us during our four-minute relationship, so you might as well do it now."

"Jeffrey, don't think that little of me," Shirley frowned. "I know you a lot better than I did when you first liked her. So I know you're not _as _rotten for her as you used to be. You make God cry for a bunch of reasons, but actually loving Annie isn't in the top 10 anymore. Top 20, maybe. That's not why I'm disappointed in you right now."

"All right, now we're getting to the good stuff," Jeff pretended to cheer. Yet Shirley gave him her special judgmental frown to keep him quiet and focused.

"I knew this day would come, you know. So I planned ahead to know how to react," Shirley revealed. "Do you know why I wouldn't have approved, besides the obvious? You've broken her heart so much, and as far as I knew, you never even said sorry! That girl had her heart wrecked so much _before _she got here, and you made it worse – both when you wrecked it and when you didn't even _try _to make it right! And she wasn't strong enough to deal with it then like she is now!"

"Well, aside from her famous freak outs, she looked fine. She didn't even cry when I told her about relationships in the bathroom!" Jeff remembered. "She just threatened to date future mass murderers!"

"Oh, then I must have imagined hearing her crying in bathrooms that year. Or when I saw her barely able to look at you after that 'Annie of it All' incident. At least until she got mad enough to kill everyone in paintball. But that's good to know," Shirley noted, which made Jeff jump up.

"She did what? Why the hell didn't you say anything?" Jeff attacked.

"You two were creepy and wrong back then, I didn't want to get into that mess! I thought she was freaking out about school for most of those bathroom cries, anyway! And I had other messy things in my stomach to deal with then, thank you!" Shirley reminded. "Besides, she clearly didn't tell you either, because you never would have dealt with it! Like you didn't today!"

Shirley then backed off from scolding mommy mode and took a softer approach. "Jeffrey, you really are a much better man for her now. Granted, the standards are low for something this sinful, but still! And you jumped up so much by just thinking about her crying! You clearly hate it when she's hurt and when you're the one who hurts her. So why can't you say it to her and tell her how sorry you are?"

"I, I…..well, I don't think about that stuff, you know that! Especially when it makes me look rotten and not kick-ass like usual! Thinking about that makes me guilty and sad and makes me hate myself! Isn't it bad enough I deal with that crap in therapy?" Jeff argued.

"If you thought it was that bad, why would you face it in therapy? And why can't you face it with Annie now?" Shirley questioned.

"I don't know how, okay? Relationships, making up for hurting someone I really…..like, all of it! I don't know anything about any of it!" Jeff admitted. "It's like how Britta screwed up complimenting me because she's not good at it! I can't face this stuff with Annie because I don't know how to do _that_ either! I've never had to before….or wanted to."

After Jeff's self-loathing filled up, he got back to being defiant and deflective. "Besides, I _was _right! The way we were back then, it never would have worked between us! In the big picture, I was right to keep her away until now! You know that!"

"Of course I do, I have eyes and a brain! But you didn't have to pile the heartbreak on like you did!" Shirley suggested. "You didn't have to ignore her for a whole summer, turn her back into a whiny little schoolgirl, defile God by sleeping with Britta behind her back, or lead her on with those googly eyes! You could have let her down _and _still showed her she meant something to you, but you didn't. You made it look like you didn't care about her at all!"

"She….she knows I can't _not _care about her," Jeff weakly defended.

"Not after you did all that and just left it hanging like it was nothing – and _she _was nothing! If you never even _tried _to show her you were sorry, assuming you _are_….then why _should_ she know?" Shirley drove home.

"To be fair, it's not in his archetype to be that remorseful," Abed interjected.

"Ah, I was due to remind you again that we're not a TV show," Jeff quipped, despite being secretly thankful for the interruption.

"And I was due to remind you I know that, so kudos for reviving our running gag," Abed thanked. "Actually, this is one of those rare times I'm_ disappointed_ our lives are like TV. I thought you and Annie would be more than the usual sitcom couple."

"Abed, if the words Sam and Diane leave your lips…." Shirley threatened.

"Ah, good callback, Shirley," Abed answered instead. "Anyway, the usual sitcom couple has a thoughtless, usually overweight man demean his impossibly hot, forgiving wife until the very end of the third act. And no matter how much he learns, he forgets it and angers her anew in the next episode. After several seasons it defies all logic, even sitcom logic, why the woman is still with such a boorish, oblivious spouse who takes her for granted every week. I had thought you and Annie would break that formula, but I suppose our show isn't that daring after all."

"Hey, I….am not usually overweight!" was all Jeff had to defend himself.

"I will admit, Annie's broken clear of her cliché lately. That's why I kept my hopes up," Abed admitted. "But while she's grown and changed out of her stereotype, you still cling to the traditions of sitcom leading men before you. It probably would have overwhelmed her originality before long. If you would have forgotten life lessons every week, got back to taking her for granted in the next episode, and never truly learned from the past due to sitcom rules, perhaps it's better the ship dies with dignity now."

"No! I am way above those sitcom fatties!" Jeff argued.

"Ah, setting up a profound moment of realization, only to brag about yourself. Classic sitcom fatty move," Abed noted.

Jeff was out of arguments for that, so he slumped back on the couch and conceded, "Damn it, you two are a deadly pairing. Imagine if you did stuff other than Jesus movies."

"We probably will late in the final season, once we use more obscure callbacks," Abed predicted. But Shirley then took over again.

"Seasons aside, Jeffrey, are you really sorry you hurt Annie all those times?" Shirley asked.

After a shorter pause than he thought he needed, Jeff admitted, "Of course I am. But just saying it isn't enough. She deserves so much more than what I'm capable of saying. Or addressing. I just don't know how to go deeper and _be_ deeper than that! And I know I have to be perfect to make up for it. But I'm not."

"Well, there you go, you admitted you're not perfect! That's a big step for you!" Shirley praised. "But you did it because you want to be with her! If you make her see how sorry you are, you will be! I mean, thinking you could hook up without doing that _was_ stupid. But you're not that stupid now, and I'm sure Annie will see it too!"

Jeff took that under advisement, looked at Shirley and Abed, then brought himself to take a first big step.

"Will you help me?" he requested. "I'm no good at doing that stuff alone, clearly. And other than Annie….I kind of trust you two more than anyone I know. I guess it's by one of Abed's dumb sitcom coincidences that you're both here now."

"It's not as bad as the one with catchphrase spewing neighbors. But it's better than the one with catchphrase spewing kids, so we're good by comparison," Abed listed.

"Yes, we are," Shirley admitted. "Well, as sinful as you and Annie still are….I guess if I can help you be _less_ sinful, God might send you to Hell's nicer districts. It's the least I can do for friends!"

"I couldn't have said it better myself. But thanks anyway," Jeff responded.

Shirley nodded her thanks, then got down to business. "Okay, listen up! It's Friday, so we got the whole weekend to get you ready! First, you and me will go over all your big mistakes with Annie. Then I'll help you see how you should have let her down easier and _talked _to her, instead of ignoring her and calling her a child. _Then_ Abed can use his movie voodoo to write _real _apologies for you. You'll make things right like a sitcom fattie by Monday morning! Only this time it'll stick for more than a week!"

"And?" Jeff inquired.

"And if Britta has to play a role, no Jeff compliments. Non damaging Jeff insult jokes only," Abed reassured.

"No wonder why I trust you two the most," Jeff complimented.

But once they forced him to really deal with how he hurt Annie, and how he had to actually make it right before they could be together, he'd probably have fewer compliments for them. At least until Monday afternoon – depending on how this little production of theirs ended.


	2. Chapter 2

After Annie parked and got out of her car on Monday morning, she checked her phone again to make sure she read it right. But her last message still said, _"Meet me at the quad_," from Abed, like it did several minutes ago. She barely saw him all weekend – at least when she came out of her room – and now he specifically asked to see her before class. But it would be weirder if this was anyone but Abed.

Yet when she got to the quad, she didn't see Abed. She saw Jeff standing there – in the same spot he was when he kissed her two years ago. Unlike two years ago, she groaned when she remembered that.

"Let me guess, Abed texted you to meet him here too?" Annie asked Jeff, already confident of the answer. "Ah, the old 'lure characters to their special spot so they can talk out their issues' trick. I wonder which movie he borrowed that from – could be any one of a hundred, really."

She sighed at Abed's obvious ploy and how useless it was, then told Jeff, "Don't worry, I'll tell him and the group we worked it out. Even though we're not-"

But before Annie could finish, Jeff closed the gap between them and ran a hand down her neck. It was actually more like what Abed did in the Dreamtorium reenactment. Which made it more obvious this was nothing but an Abed setup.

Before Annie could break away, Jeff went a step further than Abed and actually kissed her. Annie just froze in place as Jeff wrapped his arms underneath hers, just like over two years ago. And before she could stop herself, she started kissing him back again as well. Yet just as she realized what she was doing, Jeff broke away first.

"Wait, wait, this is crazy. I just….and you just…" Jeff said in a rather familiar way. "We both have to go. Alone. And it goes without saying we need to be discreet. Not a word, okay?"

What the hell? Those were the exact same words he said after the first kiss here! Those words were where it all started to go wrong for them over the next two years, and he was reenacting them too? Well, this time Annie wouldn't be too lovesick to give him a piece of her mind.

But then Jeff said some words he didn't say last time. "But that doesn't mean I don't want to talk to you."

"What? Jeff, what the hell is all this?" Annie insisted.

"Look Annie, I just had two women lie and say they loved me, and you just dumped the boy prince of hippies. We're in no position to talk about this now...but when we are, I want to see you. Just to talk, though. But I don't know….when I talk to you with a clear head, I usually feel a lot better. I don't want to lose out on that all summer," Jeff stunned Annie in more ways than one.

"Jeff, I repeat, what the _hell _are you doing?" Annie said before she got too emotional. Yet he completely ignored the question and kept talking.

"Annie, I feel like I know who I am when I'm with you. _And_ that I'm more evolved, too. I don't know what that means or what I should do about it yet. But after everything you've done for me, and how you made the worst year of my life better….I owe you the chance to stay in the loop. So after we both clear our heads, I promise we'll talk about this. And I won't let you go beside yourself until we set a date. Okay?" Jeff asked two years too late.

Why was Jeff asking two years too late? And why did Annie let herself nod before asking what was going on? And why did Jeff hug her – and then leave her to go back inside?

"Cut, perfect! Go, we've got the next scene all set for you," Annie heard Abed say. Then she actually saw Abed as Jeff ran inside the school. Well, if she couldn't question and yell at Jeff….

"Abed! You'd better have some answers right now!" Annie demanded. "Is Jeff screwing with me for one of your movies?!"

"Oh, I'm not filming this. I'm directing the performance of Jeff's career, but it won't be on screen," Abed barely helped out.

"He kissed me and….said stuff he should have said two years ago! How and why is _that _the performance of his career?!" Annie had to know.

"Ah, you see the premise already. That he's saying things he should have said after he hurt you, although he wasn't ready to be together then. I thought you wouldn't get it until the hospital scene," Abed noted, then led Annie into the school.

"He's doing what? Why? And how? And where are we going?" Annie kept asking.

"It's all right. You won't have to punch Jeff like you did at his fake wedding to Britta. Shirley ultimately realized why we didn't need that. So we're skipping ahead to the hospital scene instead," Abed only barely cleared up.

Just as Annie wondered why Abed brought up Shirley, they arrived at the same hospital bed Jeff was in two years ago, after Prof. Bauer got done with him. And Jeff was lying in that bed again right now.

"All right, this is after you called Jeff gross and the group left. But unlike in reality, Jeff calls you back to talk to you and make you feel better, even though he's not ready for more," Abed set up before making his exit. "And action!"

Annie barely got herself to walk to Jeff's bedside. "Jeff…" she started, then couldn't decide which question to ask him first. However, Jeff stepped in again with his scripted words.

"Annie, I'm not gross. That's just how I acted today. And you're not the crazy schoolgirl I made you act like today. And all summer by ignoring you," Jeff began.

"Wait a minute! You promised not to ignore me in the last scene! You even avoided me in this crazy movie version too?" Annie tried to clear up. But Abed came back to answer instead of Jeff.

"Our scenes aren't connected to each other. They each show a separate timeline where Jeff corrects his biggest mistakes with you right away. But if you keep interrupting and make Jeff have to improv, he won't get through it," Abed filled in.

"Oh, he can't? Why not?" Annie asked, a bit offended that Jeff couldn't speak from the heart to do….whatever this was.

"He's not good at improving emotional moments, as you well know. It's best that he follows me and Shirley's script for now," Abed stated. "I'm sorry, Annie, but we're already behind schedule and there's several more scenes to fit in. Jeff, you're doing great, keep it up," he fit in before leaving again. "And action!"

Annie resigned herself and looked back to Jeff, who resumed his scripted speech like he was never interrupted. "I never should have let either of us get that bad today. I never should have battled Britta instead of making things right with you. I guess that proves we're not ready to be together….but I'll settle for doing anything I can to rebuild our friendship. Anything. And if it works too well, I won't run again….or at least I'll trust you to talk me down. Can you let me do that? Please?"

Annie had no idea what to say, even if she could talk. She asked for apologies and got none on Friday, and now there was this….revisionist history. Then again, it seemed he still made his major mistakes with her in this 'timeline' anyway. But here he was saying nicer things afterwards, and not brushing it and her aside like nothing happened.

Admittedly, it would have been nice to hear that back then. It might have spared her a lot of heartbreak, repression, months of tainted moments with Jeff, childish outbursts, and crying in the bathroom.

But what was she supposed to do about that now? What did Jeff want her to do? And would he say anything unscripted when this was over?

Well, she wouldn't find out until she saw the whole thing, she supposed.

So when Abed cut the scene and had them go to the study room, Annie didn't question it or ask Jeff any questions. She also stayed quiet when Abed gave them their old prop guns from the conspiracy lessons. Since Abed was steering clear of blanket fort adventures from now on, they would just set this scene before the fort came down – and before Jeff and Annie got so close when it did.

So once Jeff set his gun down, he gave this speech. "You were never a shameful secret. The only reason I feel shame around you is because of me and my issues, not you. I don't want crazy Annie to come back, with or without a gun. And I'll make sure she doesn't by never making you wait around for me again. Well, you do need to wait for me to settle my issues….but I promise to make time for you again until I do. And hopefully we'll keep spending time after that. Okay?"

This was a little similar to the last apology, but the repetition was working. Now that Annie was settling into the routine, seeing what Jeff was doing, and seeing how he wished he said this back then, she was starting to get swept away. But when Abed took them to the men's room to reenact their famed bathroom showdown, Annie was skeptical he could make that better.

Jeff started by saying, "Either I want you or I don't, huh? I wish I could give you an answer that makes sense. But relationships are complicated, and we're in the men's room." So, the same old same old, then. This seemed to limit Jeff's options a bit – but then he said, "But I didn't say no."

Annie suddenly remembered that fact – it was the only thing she clung to for a while after their real confrontation. Jeff then continued, "Relationships _are _complicated, and you don't deserve one with complications like mine. And you don't deserve one with the likes of Dr. Quettle Corn either! Laugh off his repressed homicidal urges if you want, but I can't! He'll just hurt you even worse than I would, and I….can't stand _anyone_ hurting you. You're too important to me."

This time around, Jeff put his hands on her shoulders as he brought things home. "I really want to make things less complicated, but I need time. But I'll do anything in that time….I'd even go to Rich himself to learn how to be better for you! Even if I don't find any bodies in his basement! Until I figure things out, please don't let him get to you….not until I have answers that make sense. And I really want to make sense for you."

"Jeff…." Annie breathed out, impressed that he pulled it out after all. So much that she almost wanted to rewrite history herself and kiss him – like part of her wanted to back then. But before she could rewrite anything – or savor how Jeff was looking at her – Abed emerged from a stall and proclaimed "Cut!" then moved them back towards the study room.

However, Abed didn't want them to go inside. This scene was set after the "Annie of it All" incident – and unlike on that day, Jeff was waiting afterwards to talk privately with Annie. Abed even got Annie to walk past the room before Jeff stopped her.

"I ended things with Britta!" Jeff started. "The secrecy was the only thing keeping us together, and you guys wrecked it. I don't want her anymore….especially after what we did to you today."

Jeff steeled himself – and didn't look like he was acting – then said, "There is an Annie of it All, Annie. And it's so big and confusing and new to me, I don't know what to do about it. I certainly don't know how to admit it in front of people! I just know how to run away and hurt you when I do it. But after how I hurt you today, it made me feel like I cheated on you with Britta all year. And that's way too low for even me. Of course that's ridiculous, but….when you feel the way I feel about you, ridiculous feelings pretty much run your life."

Annie tried to stay composed as Jeff's words, her rotten memories from last year – and her fury from last year – washed over her. Yet the fury was chipped away as Jeff continued, "We _have _had long looks, stolen glances and a lot more for some time, Annie. I wish that was enough for us to be together, I really do. But even if it's not right now….I'm tired of making you think it's all in your head. And I'm tired of hanging around other women while I string you along."

Somehow, Jeff smiled for the first time today after saying that. "You know, we have another paintball game coming up. I could help you last longer, since I am the reigning champion and all. I'll bet you could take _a lot _of aggression out on training partners! And I'll bet teaming up with you would make this year better than the last one, even if I didn't win. Or do other things I did last time."

Somehow, Annie now smiled for the first time today as well. Just as this started to feel like one of those 'long looks and stolen glances' moments, they were interrupted – but by Britta this time.

"Annie, me and Jeff are over!" Britta acted. "We were horny and we liked keeping secrets, that's all! But he never felt anything for me like he felt for you!" She then turned to Jeff and acted, "Isn't that right, cheater?" she asked and then slapped him – or rather, she pretended to slap him and Jeff leaned back as if she did.

"Ow! That's right, it's true, I already told her! Jeez!" Jeff acted.

Britta nodded to both of them, then broke character with, "There! I said you two are better together, I pretended to act jealous, and I even just _pretended _to slap you! Have I groveled enough now?"

"Perfect, that's a cut!" Abed answered for Jeff, as he came back and Annie again shook off her awe and wonder at Jeff's words. She even barely heard Abed's latest words, "Okay, let's get everyone else in place for the finale!"


	3. Chapter 3

Once Annie took in that there was still one scene left in Jeff's play, she asked its director, "All right, what's this finale, Abed? You covered all the rotten stuff in sophomore year, but I he wasn't _that _bad last year."

"You're right, we had nothing to use there," Shirley emerged to say. "We couldn't write anything for him after Model UN, and we couldn't film him helping you move. So we're skipping to last Friday and getting it over with."

"And you really wrote all this with Abed?" Annie asked, figuring she might get some answers from Shirley now, at least.

"I just helped Jeffrey see how he should have let you down easier. Abed made it a script, so blame him for taking the Jesus quotes out, okay? I thought they'd help sell Jeff's guilt, but I'm not Abed, so what do I know about scripts? That's half of 'scripture' right there, but whatever!" Shirley ranted before taking her seat in the study room.

Soon Troy and Pierce arrived as well, leaving Abed to put them right where they were on Friday. As Annie stood in her position from Friday, she tried again to take this all in. She asked for Jeff to show remorse for the past and address it, and he pretty much had. He included most everything she wanted to hear, then and now….everything except….

"And action!" Abed broke her train of thought, but barely. Even as Jeff came up to her, Annie already guessed what he'd do. And she didn't really want to see it.

"Cut!" Annie said in Abed's place very early. "Jeff, if this is going to be like those other speeches, please don't bother!"

Annie took a step back, realizing she started a little harsh. She backpedaled by adding, "Jeff, you put a lot of effort into this, and I love that. And I love the stuff you _did _say today. But you never _could _have said that back then, and it barely sounds like you anyway! Besides, the one thing you never said is 'I'm sorry.' And that's the_ one_ thing I really wanted from you."

"I _knew _we forgot to put in something!" Abed blurted out. "I suppose I can't master every genre the first time out."

"Abed, Jeff collaborated with you on these 'scripts,' right?" Annie wondered, to which Abed nodded. "Then he didn't think of writing 'I'm sorry' either," she assured before turning back to Jeff.

"Fair enough. Everyone keep quiet on the set," Abed warned the others, while some intimidating glares from Shirley – and less intimidating ones from Britta – kept the group quiet.

Jeff stayed quiet too as Annie continued. "All I _ever_ wanted were simple apologies. Just to know you understood how much you hurt me. You made it look like you didn't know _or _care back then, and that made everything far worse!"

"How could I know when you never told me?" Jeff was misguided enough to ask out loud.

"Okay, then I'll tell you now," Annie shot right back. "You helped make sophomore year the second worst year of my life. But how could I tell you that back then, when you would have said it was all in my head?"

"I never would have….not like _that_!" Jeff tried to argue, but he sounded weak enough to know there was some truth there.

Annie sighed and backtracked again when she heard that tone. "I know I'm better in some ways because of that year, I _know _that! And I know you are too! It was good for me in the long run, but it sucked so bad in the moment! I've let go of _most _of it, but I can't go all the way! Not while part of me's still afraid you'll let it get that bad again!"

Annie continued to soft pedal, "I know you care more now, and I'd like to think you wouldn't run away like you used to. But I can't assume _anything _on blind faith anymore! That's why it hurt so much before! It's one of the biggest lessons I learned from all this."

"And I thought _you _were the ideal teacher of the group," Jeff tried to quip, though he knew it wouldn't buy much time.

"Jeff, I know you'll hurt me again at some point. Hell, I'll probably hurt you too!" Annie practically chuckled. "I just don't want it to be _that_ rough again. I'm afraid it will, if we can't fix things better than we used to. I don't need a big spectacle that's a few years too late! I just need a nice, simple 'I'm sorry' to know you care. And to know you'll stick around so we can make it right _together_.''

She then paused, closed her eyes and admitted, "So I guess I should set the example, then. Because….I _am _sorry too."

"You are? That sounds weird somehow," Jeff pointed out. "I did most of the damage, you know."

"But not all. I did my fair share by being an oblivious, naïve child," Annie remembered. "And I don't remember acting _that _bad _before _I kissed you! Chang whistle blowing aside."

"Well, it might have sped up the Chang dynasty by a year or two, but go on," Jeff brought himself to joke.

"In any case, now I want to be someone who _doesn't _freak out or avoid reality, or drive people away. I wasn't ready to be that person before, but maybe I am now!" Annie noted, but struggled to continue her train of thought.

Jeff could fill in for her, though, finishing, "But you don't know if _I_ am."

"I want to, Jeff. I _should _know by now, but…." Annie sighed. "I want to apologize for my mistakes as soon as I can from now on. I want to talk through our problems, like the adult I want so badly to be. I want to stick around and try to understand what you want, fight like hell to give it to you, and not be afraid to get your help if I can't! And I don't want a _script _to be the only way I show my real feelings! I've followed scripts too much in my life already!"

Annie caught her breath and steeled herself to finish, "If nothing else, I want us to _at least _keep our friendship strong in those rough times. I don't want to barely stay real friends, like back then."

"You….don't think we were real friends then?" Jeff asked quietly.

"Not like we were before we kissed. And I missed having that kind of friendship _so_ much….you _know_ I never had it before," Annie nearly teared up. "Losing that hurt worse than you not loving me. It took us too long to get it back, and I don't want to go through that again," she left hanging.

"I don't want that either. That's the reason I did this. That's what _all _those speeches were about!" Jeff came to realize. "They pretty much had the same message yours did!"

With that, Annie now saw the funny side in all this. If Jeff was telling the truth, then they really were on the same page and wanted the same things – and they still went through all this nonsense to figure that out. It was depressing, but at the same time it was also funny by now – which was better than sad and heart breaking like before.

So Annie laughed at all the irony, turning around so Jeff wouldn't think she was laughing at him. And so she wouldn't cry just by looking at him. But a few little sobs did come in between the laughter, although no tears were shed, which was progress.

She thought she heard Abed say, "Wait for it," in the background, but her head was spinning too much to be sure.

And then came the words, "I'm _so_ sorry, Annie" behind her in a near whisper.

If Jeff had used those words in the past, the _so _would have been quite sarcastic. But it was far from that as possible this time.

This was enough to make Annie turn around at least, while the others – besides Abed – gasped like a studio audience. But Annie didn't acknowledge them, and still couldn't even look Jeff in the eye yet. However, Jeff did put a hand on her shoulder and ask, "I'll get back to the simple stuff later. But can you put up with a few more speeches first? For context?"

"I guess," Annie answered, wishing she wasn't smiling as much.

"Hey now, that's not in Abed's blasphemous script," she heard Shirley comment.

"No more scripts, Shirley. Just tell Abed to keep rolling in his head," Jeff responded.

"Way ahead of you, Jeff. And improv!" Abed added.

Jeff finally took the spotlight back and started, "Annie, you're right. I tried not to think about how I hurt you. If I thought about it, I'd have moved away out of guilt, or dated you before I was ready and hurt you anyway. But when Shirley made me go over how I hurt you, and did nothing about it, I felt even worse."

Annie tried not to look _that _sad for Jeff's sadness, since he had every right to feel guilty. But he wasn't trying to run from it this time. "You deserve so much more than a regular apology for that. But you're right. I didn't try to find out what you really wanted first. Which is pretty fitting, right?"

"There's a bit of irony somewhere," Annie gave Jeff that much.

Jeff then got to the bigger issue, "Am I sorry I hurt you all those times?" But he answered with, "Well, there's that. But there's also how I never _tried _to make it better. I just wanted it to go away and ignored that you couldn't do the same. Because of that, you were too hurt and scared for us to even stay friends. At least the friends we were."

"Well, that might have been too hard for crazy lovestruck me, anyway," Annie conceded.

"That's why I still believe we shouldn't have been together then," Jeff admitted. "But I didn't even keep you as my best – well, _one _of – my best friends in the meantime. And my life is so much easier when you are."

Annie exhaled with a mixture of emotions, but wasn't ready to give a straight reaction yet. So Jeff continued with, "Letting that fall apart for over a year….it was one of the biggest mistakes of my life. So of course I'm sorrier than I've ever been. Hell, if I didn't do it, we could have been ready for a _real _relationship_ last_ year!"

Annie couldn't do the math before Jeff confessed, "I wanted to show you what I _should _have done after I hurt you. And to show you it's what I _want _to do now. I can't promise I'll never let you down again, but I can promise I won't go _anywhere _anymore when I do! It's just what you wanted…but without the speeches."

Now Jeff laughed at the irony and added, "We really _were _on the same page. I just didn't include two little words, that's all."

Annie searched for serious words to say, but was too overwhelmed to think of any. So she bought time by semi-joking, "One of your biggest mistakes, huh? So it's just behind forging a law degree?"

"Well, that turned out _kind of_ well. But I'm still hoping the bigger mistakes do too. Praying, even," Jeff admitted.

"Yes! See, even Jeff's acting is better than your writing, Abed! What do that and Jesus tell you?" Shirley gloated, although Jeff and Annie blocked her out.

"So now what?" Annie inquired.

"Well, that was the first half of my apology. Treating you better for the rest of….our time together is the second," Jeff revealed. "But I need your help. Shirley and Abed were great helpers this weekend, but they can't help like you can. I need that to stay better, before I wind up making you a sitcom wife."

"A what?" Annie asked before she understood. "Oh God, Abed, you told him your sitcom couple rants?"

"They're not rants when they're based in truth. And hours of clichéd evidence set to laugh tracks. Still improving," Abed reminded.

Jeff shook it off and continued, "He does have a point. I make progress and go back to being a dick almost every week. That's okay for the most part, but not with you anymore. I don't want you to keep forgiving me for crap I'll do again next week. And I can't stop doing it unless you help me….unless I _let _you help me. But I'll owe you real, faster apologies either way."

Jeff got started by saying, "I'm sorry," and then kissing Annie's right cheek. Then he said "I'm sorry" again and kissed her left. He then said it again before kisses to her forehead, nose, and neck.

By then, Annie realized these five kisses _were_ his shorter, simpler apologies for his five major mistakes with her. For the one he made last Friday, he again embellished, "I am so sorry," and briefly kissed her lips.

After letting Annie take it all in, Jeff added, "Keep in mind, saying and doing this sappy stuff is _murdering _my cool guy soul. And I did the sappiest stuff without a script. And I'm doing it in front of _people…._so if any of that gets me brownie points, let me know."

This really wasn't the time to joke, even about true stuff. But with the truth Jeff gave her, it was refreshing to hear him sound more like himself – so she had to laugh. Yet she held her hand up to signal she wasn't laughing _at _Jeff. So by the time she was done, Jeff looked lighter and more relieved as well.

"Okay, when you put it _that _way," Annie paused, making Jeff visibly twitch while waiting for more. Yet she showed mercy and said, "Apologies accepted. All of them. Knowing you're truly sorry is enough for me. And _now _we've moved on."

Annie gave Jeff her own peck on the lips, then smiled until he finally smiled back – with the most relieved smile she'd ever seen on anyone.

"And cue clapping!" Abed announced, leading to the study group clapping on cue like in an inspirational movie finale. Troy even chanted "Rudy! Rudy! Rudy!" for a while, even after everyone stopped applauding. "Oops, wrong Abed script, sorry!" he corrected.

Jeff brushed that aside and stayed focused on Annie, daring to ask, "So, does dinner sound good again?"

Annie left him hanging again, then answered, "You know, we've got a busy week ahead, so we can't set a date for a while. But we can warm up with some one-on-one practice time together until then." Then she put on a smile and added, "First and foremost, I'd like some juicy behind-the-scenes stories from the weekend, please."

"Ooh, that's good, expose Abed's devilish editing so it can't go to Heaven with me!" Shirley demanded.

"Thanks for the reminder, Shirley. We've got a few minutes before class, so I _might _fit that in. Next time or the time after that, definitely," Jeff promised. He quickly went back to Annie and asked, "Well? Will you go to this….kind of pre-date with me?" After a pause, he added, "This is one of those 'killing me on the inside' things I get brownie points for, by the way."

"I think it could be the best date I've ever had," Annie reacted, trying to brush over the sad implications. Yet despite the sad handful of real dates she'd had, and the failed dreams of romance in the past, walking a more open Jeff Winger to class wouldn't merely be good by comparison.

And if it led to a real, proper best date ever – or a few – maybe it'd be worth being a sitcom wife once in a while along the way. _Only _once in a while.

"Abed, you can fade to black now," Jeff interrupted Annie's train of thought before leading her out of the study room.

As they left, they heard Pierce say, "Are we done being props now? I still get scale for this, even if you didn't give me lines!"

"Done. Shirley, you and Jesus can take us home," Abed's voice rang out.

"Ah, saving Jesus for the tag line. Better than nothing," Shirley was heard, as Jeff and Annie exited from view. But before they disappeared, Shirley announced, "In His name, cut and print! Is that how you -"

**THE END**


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